A variety of systems are used for deploying equipment used in the production of fluids, such as oil, from producing wells. For example, tubing has commonly been used for the deployment of downhole equipment. For example, electric submergible pumping systems may be deployed by appropriate deployment tubing to a desired location within a wellbore. Depending on the application, the production fluid, e.g. oil, is produced either through the center of the tubing or through the annulus formed between the tubing and the wellbore casing.
When deploying systems, such as electric submergible pumping systems, it is necessary to provide power to the system via an appropriate power cable connected between a power supply at the surface and a submergible electric motor of the electric submergible pumping system. The power cable generally is either tied to the outside of the tubing or routed through the center of the tubing. For example, if the production fluid is produced through the annulus formed around the deployment tubing, it is convenient to provide power cable through the center of the tubing.
One type of tubing commonly utilized is coiled tubing. Coiled tubing may be mounted on rolls that are unrolled during deployment of the downhole system for relatively rapid and convenient deployment. For certain applications, a power cable may be disposed in the center of the coiled tubing. For example, Reda of Bartlesville, Okla. a division of Schlumberger Corporation, manufactures REDACoil.TM. in which power cable for supplying power to electric submergible motors is prepackaged within coiled tubing.
Generally, the coiled tubing and the internal power cable are formed in the lengths needed to accommodate deployment of the electric submergible pumping system to a desired location within a wellbore. In certain applications, however, particularly with deep wells, it would be advantageous to have a modular deployment system in which two or more sections of combined coiled tubing and power cable could readily be connected during deployment of the submergible system.